A message from the Center for Leadership, Teaching, and Learning

CLTL News

On Feb. 23, over 30 faculty attended "Amplifying Student Engagement with AI," a workshop facilitated by Matt Lucas, Harder Chair of Business Administration, and Chelsea Taylor, visiting assistant professor of religious studies (watch a recording of the event here). Details about a follow-up event discussing the activities and assignments that faculty created in this workshop can be found below.

Earlier in the semester, Caitlin Jorgensen, director of the Philip Boshoff Writing Center, delivered a talk titled, “Fear Not for AI am With You: Strategies for Teaching Writing in the AI Age.” The audio of the presentation and the presentation slides are accessible online. 

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‌This year, the Center for Leadership, Teaching and Learning (CLTL) and Student Academic Services, with support from a New York State Education Department grant, is offering individual consultations on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) for faculty. There are currently a few more slots; email Beck Krefting to take advantage of this opportunity. Those interested in learning more are invited to check out these UDL resources. Please see below or the CLTL announcements page page for more information, including details on how to apply to receive support to take a course in UDL this summer.

Announcements

Funding for new Black studies courses 

‌Important reminder: Due to the generous support of the Mellon Foundation through a three-year grant, “Africana Studies and the Humanities at Skidmore: Transnational Explorations in Social Justice,” we are offering stipends of $1,000 to faculty who are successful in considerably revising or creating a new course cross-listed with the Black Studies Program. To learn more, visit the CLTL announcements page. 

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‌Universal Design training opportunity: Applying Universal Design for Learning principles to your course 

‌Supported by a grant from the New York State Education Department, CLTL and Student Academic Services are collaborating to support a limited number of faculty interested in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) training. In May 2024, the SUNY Center for Professional Development is offering a training opportunity.  

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‌The six-week asynchronous course runs from May 14 to June 24 and will introduce learners to UDL, the benefits of accessible content, and how it promotes student success. Learners will see how UDL offers insight for more effective teaching and learning. In addition to supporting the full cost of attendance, participating faculty members will receive a $750 stipend. In exchange, faculty will be asked to share their experience and consult with other faculty. Find a full description of the program online. Faculty interested in registering should contact Director of Student Academic Services Jamin Totino. This opportunity is first come, first served. More information and student testimonials are available online. 

Spring Programming ‌‌

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‌Spring Research Salon with Lisa Jackson-Schebetta: ‘Peace-Building and Performance in Contemporary Columbia: Theatrical, Imaginative, and Corporeal Laboring'

• ‌When and where: 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Thursday, March 28, in the Weller Room (Lib 212)

• Description: Peacebuilding performances in Colombia enact a constellation of creativity and care — one that is steadfastly ignored, downplayed, and invisibilized by an extractive U.S. (and global) imaginary that profits from a Colombia predominantly (even, solely) mired in violence. As historians and political scientists point out: the world knows Colombia primarily through violence, not peace. An examination of peace-building performance in Colombia offers pointed critiques of dominant models of peace: Both liberal peace theory and peace processes centered solely on the human. For example, in 2016, President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia leader Rodrigo Lodoño signed a peace accord to end 50 years of conflict. They used a pen made from the spent casing of an assault rifle, symbolizing the rejection of bullets for the writing of peace. That same month, in Medellín, dozens of people performatively “sowed” themselves in the street: planting their bodies by covering their legs with dirt and sitting silent vigil in protest of the displacement, disappearance, and destruction wrought by state and extra-state actors. Both are examples of peace-building performances. Just as conflict in Colombia is staggering in its complexity, peace building in Colombia is equally complex, long-term, and diverse. RSVP  by Monday, March 25. 

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‌Activating the Teacher-Scholar Model: Synergizing teaching and research 

• ‌When and where: 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 9, and 1-2 p.m. Wednesday, April 10, in Murray-Aikins Dining Hall Test Kitchen 
• ‌Description: How can we learn from each other about how to make teaching and scholarship work together synergistically? Our time and energy are precious, and we often want to shield our scholarly energies from getting drained by teaching or resent when scholarly deadlines come at exactly the wrong time in a semester. Are there concrete ways to foster those magical moments when research and teaching support each other? Come join us over lunch to discuss how to capitalize on the potential for synergy in our research and teaching. These conversations will be facilitated by Eliza Kent, professor of religious studies, and Juan Navea, professor and chair of the Chemistry Department. Lunch tickets will be distributed in the Atrium of the Dining Hall before the start of the event. Please RSVP here to reserve a spot in one or both of the lunch discussions. 

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‌Debrief: Amplifying Student Engagement with AI — A pedagogical workshop designed to develop best practices for integrating AI-based classroom activities

• ‌When and where: 4-5:30 p.m. Friday, April 19, in the Weller Room (Lib 212)
• ‌Description: This event is a follow-up to the successful February workshop where faculty were introduced to various strategies for designing ethical AI-based classroom activities that foster active learning and encourage enthusiastic student participation. At this event, we will discuss incorporation of these new AI-based classroom activities and student responses to them. This conversation will be facilitated by Matt Lucas, Harder Chair of Business Administration, and Chelsea Taylor, visiting assistant professor of religious studies. There will snacks! Please RSVP here.

Ponder this…

• Read this... piece on active learning in higher education. 
• ‌Register for... Food Solutions New England Sustainability Institute’s 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge, starting in April. 
• ‌Student Tip: Activate the use of a discussion board/wiki/forum in theSpring and invite students to build notes together during class.

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